


Of Bruises and Brothers

by Sheilaprior



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Always, Autistic Beau, Beau and molly's friendship is awesome, F/F, Gen, all the way, also ND molly and Autistic Beau, beau gets outed to her dad and runs to molly, beau's dad is a homophobic ass, they're teenagers, tw abuse, tw for implied conversion therapy, tw homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-02-08 17:45:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18628168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sheilaprior/pseuds/Sheilaprior
Summary: Beauregard Lionett did not run from anything.She did not run from bullies, they ran from her. She did not run under her bed in a storm, she ran out into the rain to feel it on her face. She would not run from girls, she ran towards them, she ran to their beds, their lips, she ran to the pleasure that came from getting laid and she ran to the adrenaline rush that came from a fight.But on a snowy night in Zadash, Beauregard Lionett ran, and maybe it was the right thing to do.





	Of Bruises and Brothers

Beauregard Lionett did not run from anything.

She did not run from bullies, they ran from her. She did not run under her bed in a storm, she ran out into the rain to feel it on her face. She would not run from girls, she ran towards them, she ran to their beds, their lips, she ran to the pleasure that came from getting laid and she ran to the adrenaline rush that came from a fight.

But as she tore down the streets of Zadash, snow and blood blurring her already terrible vision, she did not want to be caught. Not by the police, not by some random person in the alley, not by him.

So Beau ran.

She panted as she let her legs carry her to the first place they thought of, which was apparently the Fletchling and Moondrop foster home. For once in her life, pride was not a priority as she pounded her bloody fists on the door.

“PLEASE, PLEASE, LET ME IN!” She fell to her knees, looking wildly behind her for anyone who might be coming. She didn’t notice the door opening until she fell forward, landing face first on the dark blue carpet of the front hall. She barely noticed as she was helped to her feet by someone much taller than her.

“Beauregard, what, what are-” She vaguely recognized Mr. Gustave’s voice before it was interrupted.

“What the fuck was that, who the fuck would bang on the door at…” Beau somehow managed to see a very confused looking Mollymauk through her black eye as she lifted her head.

Molly’s eyes widened as he took in his friend’s appearance. Gustave was quicker to react.

“Molly, you help her sit down somewhere, I’ll go get the first aid kit.” Gustave very gently passed the bleeding teenager to Molly, who just as carefully held her. Molly had seen Beau after a fight before, that was nothing new, but this was something all together. She wasn’t smiling through bloody teeth or rubbing her neck while halfheartedly apologizing for bleeding on his clothes.

Her lips were a little blue, and blood worked its way down her face from a cut on her forehead. She had nothing more than a tank top and pajamas on, goosebumps dotting her skin like freckles. Her arms had nail tracks up and down them, but worse than everything was the way she was shaking, looking like she’d been crying.

Molly absentmindedly put his hoodie over her shoulders, muttering something about how she’d better not stain it. She didn’t even flip him off; she winced. That was bad.

Thankfully, Gustave returned quickly with the first aid kit. Molly had taken Beau to what had been dubbed ‘the shit bed,’ which was the one couch only sat on for situations like this. Molly was sure they’d have to burn it one day. But it would have to wait for now.

“Beauregard,” Gustave tried to get the teenager looking at him, but to no avail. Molly looked at his friend.

“Hey, beau.” He gently tapped her shoulder. She looked up at him slowly, not really making eye contact. Molly offered his spinner ring. “I know it’s not a cube, but will this be okay for a bit while Gustave patches you up?”

It took a few seconds, but she nodded, shakily taking his spinner ring. Molly nodded. “Okay, I’m gonna go get you a blanket, your lips look worse than the rest of your face.” He made to get up, but Beau had a firm grip on his pajama skirt. “… Or I can stay here, if that’s better?” He got another nod, so he shuffled closer to her, wrapping his arm gently around her shoulders and trying to rub some warmth into her.

Gustave was brilliant in that he didn’t ask questions, and he was gentle. Beau only hissed a little at the rubbing alcohol against her forehead. Once he’d put the last band-aid over the last cut, he went to make some tea, and make sure nobody else was up.

Molly looked at Beau, who was no longer shaking, but not making eye contact as she spun the ring around her finger.

Molly hadn’t been able to sleep, and for once, he was glad he couldn’t. But this was not something to be glad for, whatever this was.

“Beau… what happened?”

“…” Beau looked at her bloodstained pajama pants and pulled Molly’s hoodie around her. “…. He found out.”

Molly’s eyes widened and he let himself fall back against the sofa. “Fuck.”

“Yeah.”

“Beau I’m-”

“H-He went crazy, s-started breaking things, and, and talking about god, like, like that had anything to do with it, and, and he said he was gonna, w-was gonna-” she broke herself off with a sob. A sound so wretched and horrifying that Molly never wanted to hear it again. Not from Beau.

Molly had known a long time about her father’s homophobia, hell he’d pretended to be Beau’s boyfriend once so her father would let her go to a school event. So had Caleb, and Fjord. Cadeuces had refused, as he didn’t like lying. Caleb had somehow been the only acceptable one(Read, smart enough for her dad). He knew it was bad, but not this bad. He didn’t know what to do, so he just held her while she cried into his shoulder. This was weird, and not good weird. But, if there was one thing he could do, it was talk.

“Hey, hey, you’re okay, you’re cool, I gotcha. Listen, your dad is a fucking asshole, okay, and not like the way you’re an asshole, or I’m an asshole. And I promise, if he wants to try to send you anywhere, he’s gonna have to pry every last member of the mighty nein off your leg, even Shakaste and Nila. You’re not going anywhere except maybe here or Jester’s house, that’s all up to you, but please, don’t stay there anymore.” Beau trembled in his arms, not saying anything, so he talked more, he talked about school, about the play, gossip, Yasha, Toya’s new song, Orna being Orna, everything.

When Gustave came back, they had their tea, and beau stopped shaking, and let herself cry a little longer before downing the rest of the tea and falling asleep. Molly chuckled a little and looked to Gustave, who only looked worried. Molly’s frown dropped.

“Please don’t send her back there.”

“I promise you kiddo, she’ll be nowhere near that bastard if I have anything to say about it.” He picked up the teacups and put them back in the kitchen. He came back and carefully picked her up, the pair of them heading back up the stairs to molly’s room. Molly gladly took the empty top bunk and Gustave laid Beau in the bottom one, draping the blankets, plus a few extra, over her. “Sleep well Molly, we’ll talk more in the morning.”

“Night.”

Beauregard Lionett didn’t run from anything, and that night was no exception, she was not running from her father, she was running to her brother.


End file.
